The smartphone industry is mainly driven by Apple’s market share growth that has been 10x higher than its competitors within the last year. On the other hand, Apple has faced tough competition by key smartphone manufacturers. For instance, Nokia sold approximately 18,441,000 units in the Q2 of 2009, and RIM (Blackberry) sold approximately 7,680,000 units. During the same period, Apple sold approximately 6,900,000 units. Other key players in the smartphone industry are HTC, Fujitsu, Sony and Motorola.
Android OS
For many consumers, the main competition is between the iPhone and the Android OS that was launched in the market in 2008. According to a survey conducted by ChangeWave, 4,068 consumers believe that Motorola Droid is a direct threat to the iPhone and also one of the best smartphones available on the market today due to the native support for Exchange, the unified contact list and the exceptional new mapping and navigation application from Google. Besides, 21% of respondents who plan to buy a smartphone within the next 3 months they would prefer a smartphone that features the Android OS.
However, in the Q4 of 2009 the Android OS was ranked second in consumer preferences among the key mobile operating systems, after iPhone OS which remains the number one choice for operating systems.
iPhone
If one needed to put a hierarchy in the needs of consumers that are targeted by smartphones, then the most important would be (1) handling phone calls including battery life and call quality; (2) sending text messages; (3) handling email; (4) navigating phone numbers; (5) featuring web browsing; and (6) featuring advanced customization. And the truth of the matter is that the iPhone performs well or even shines in all of the above.
Although competition is tough, the iPhone is currently the landmark of the smartphone industry, for the most part because it features amazing technological advancements. Without neglecting the fundamentals of a phone such as calling and texting, the iPhone offers the in-between extras of other higher priced phones such as web browsing and Bluetooth, and a unique 3.5″ touch screen that packs the device’s exceptional technology. The latest model of the iPhone, the iPhone 3GS, runs twice as fast as any 3G model, from switching apps to opening attachments and sending text messages, and has a longer battery life although high-speed networks need more power.
Android OS or iPhone?
One of the reasons that the iPhone will continue prevailing in 2010 is because the iPhone features the touch screen. The Android OS comes with a QWERTY slider keyboard that, no matter how good it is, it cannot have the same on demand, streamlined, glossy feel of the iPhone.
Another plus for the iPhone is that its advanced technology and high quality parts allow anyone to create and publish games and apps to the Internet for download, thus offering the ability to create a huge variety of apps specialized for the iPhone alone. This means that as the iPhone’s popularity increases, the developers of an application will enjoy greater earnings.
iPhone or any other competitor?
For its fiscal Q3, RIM reported $3.9 billion revenues, up 11% from fiscal Q2 and 41% from the Q3 of 2008. Net income for Q3 was $1.10 per share versus 69 cents in the Q3 of 2008. Research In Motion (RIM), the company behind the BlackBerry, delivered more than 10 million mobile communication devices during the Q3 alone. Besides, the company estimates an increase of 6.8% to its subscribers from 4.4 million to 4.7 million.
On the other hand, for many consumers and telecom analysts, RIM delivers short. If they do not rewrite their OS from scratch, they are likely to be left behind in the mobile OS battle and 2010 will be a critical year for them.
In conclusion, the iPhone is likely to dominate the market in 2010 as well. Although competition is tough, the RIM’s limitation to deliver on long-term and the fact that Android is still experimenting with Google being on the lead for entering its own branded phone, leaves iPhone on the top.
Christina Pomoni has acquired her MBA Finance from the American College of Greece. Her advanced familiarity with financial statement analysis, capital budgeting and market research has been acquired through her professional career at high-esteemed organizations.
The first Android Smartphone from the world’s 4th largest mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson has not lost its steam even after getting this late and with other Android phones hitting the markets lately. Admittedly, the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 missed its launch dates, missed Christmas, missed the Chinese New Year and Valentine’s day but hopefully, its release won’t take any longer before the promised 1st quarter of 2010 is over.
The recent World Mobile Congress held in Barcelona showcased a number of Android smartphones using the latest 2.0/2.1 Éclair version mostly coming from HTC, Samsung and Motorola with a few for upstart mobile phone makers like Dell and Asus. What was more a curiosity has been a couple of X10 derivatives – the Mini and QWERTY sliding Mini Pro smartphones with a less powerful CPU and smaller screen sizes. It is plain that Sony has started a new line of Android smartphones with the Xperia X10.
Features Remain
Visiting the Sony Ericsson website reveals that the X10 is already featured there with a rather nifty animation and some details that are just as exciting as when it was launched. There’s nothing new to add. It still features the same Qualcomm QSD8250 Snapdragon CPU clocked at 1 GHz which is already used in a number of Android smartphone like the Acer Liquid though clocked at a lower speed and the forthcoming HTC Desire. It’s just a matter of time when the X10’s product superiority will be another thing of the past.
It runs an older Android 1.6 Cupcake when it could have shifted to the 2.0/2.1 Éclair version that its rivals in the same class are now using. We figure Sony’s engineers may have an uphill battle porting the Rachel UI (renamed UX for User eXperience) to the newer version but no matter. The Android world is still eager to see what the UX-tweaked Android has to offer.
The X10 still sports a jaw-dropping display that’s the largest for an Android handset. It features a 4-inch WideVGA capacitive touchscreen with a scratch-resistant coating as well as a gravity accelerometer for auto-rotate viewing according to handset orientation. At the moment, Motorola Droid is a close second at 3.7 inches and also the upcoming HTC Desire.
No doubt its imaging features remain unchallenged except for a few emerging handsets with 12 megapixel cameras and high definition 720o video recording. Otherwise, its 8-megapixel autofocus/touchfocus camera with LED flash, video light, image stabilization, face/smile detection, 8x digital zoom, WVGA video recording at 30fps, geo-tagging from its GPS receiver and red-eye reduction are everything a high end point-and-shoot camera should have.
Software is often what distinguishes a good smartphone from an also-ran. Here, the X10 offers Timescape, Mediascape and ActiveSync which makes your multimedia, messaging and emailing experience a real pleasure to do while on the road. Just about everything else in the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10is what we can expect form an upscale mobile phone.
You get 3G/HSDPA, WiFi 82.11 b/g and Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR and A2DP. You get a generous 1GB internal memory with microSD support for up to 16 GB, A-GPS with Wisepilot navigation with Google Maps for it’s a-GPS, a digital compass with its magnetometer and the industry standard 3.5mm headphone jack.
There’s a continuing battle going on between the various smartphone operating systems on the market, but which one’s best? Let’s take a look at the three front runners.
Sony Ericsson Satio
It’s fair to say that the Sony Ericsson Satio is easily one of the most hotly anticipated phones of the year. On the face of it, the big reason for the excitement is its 12 megapixel camera, and whilst that is a force to be reckoned with, there’s so much more to the Sony Ericsson Satio. It’s the first ‘Entertainment Unlimited’ phone, and that doesn’t just mean it combines Cyber-Shot and Walkman technology. On top of that, the Sony Ericsson Satio is also going to pull in social networking, high quality games and incredible video services to become a one-stop mobile entertainment hub. It promises far more than that, however, as the Sony Ericsson Satio is also powered by Symbian, giving it true smartphone capabilities, which will no doubt include its very own app store.
Motorola DEXT
The first important fact about the Motorola DEXT, and the bit that has made it so talked about, is its interface: Google Android, with MOTOBLUR riding on top. As it’s the first Android phone to focus on social networking as its key feature, the Motorola DEXT has garnered an awful lot of trade and consumer interest. It’s certainly more of a looker (especially in the interface, the newly designed MOTOBLUR UI) than previous Android phones, and that fusion of enhanced looks and the still-awesome power of Android makes the Motorola DEXT a very compelling phone indeed. If social networking is your thing, this is the phone for you.
HTC HD2
The Sony Ericsson Satio is easily the best camera phone on this list, and the Motorola DEXT has the edge in terms of interface, but why is the third phone, the HTC HD2, so much better? The answer lies within the processor hidden inside the HTC HD2, as it’s the first phone in the world to come with a 1GHz chip. Or, in other words, it’s little short of a laptop in the body of a mobile phone. So, the HTC HD2 promises to be faster and smoother than any other mobile phone on the market. Ally that with the unique 3D interface running on top of Windows Mobile, and you get a phone that truly is a joy to use. There’s also one other fact that can’t be denied…
Quite apart from it being hyper-fast, with an incredibly fluid interface, the HTC HD2 also has the biggest screen on the market, coming in at an unbelievable 4.3 inches. That’s a lot of real estate on screen, and it means that even previously fiddly menu bars are now finger-friendly, given the massive screen size. And as for the virtual keyboard on the HTC HD2, the extra size makes it little different from typing on a physical keyboard. Add in the rage of impressive features, including a 5 megapixel camera, broadband-fast internet access, a superb music player and GPS, and it adds up to a simple fact: The HTC HD2 is quite simply the best Windows Mobile phone, and maybe even the best PHONE, ever made, and it utterly canes the other two on this list.
Expert on mobile phones, having worked in the industry for over 7 years.
Phones are the best medium to remain in touch with family, business officials and friends. Phones can be used for multiple tasks. One can call, message, click images, store files, access to Internet and many more with phones. Those days are gone when phones were meant for rich people. These days, anyone can own latest handset which comes boasted with high-end features. One can actually own more than one handset at a time. Wide range of handsets are developed by different phone manufacturers which are available with reasonable price and are capable to meet phone needs of middle class people.
Christmas mobile phones, this term can be used for such phones which are specially launched on the festive season of Christmas. People worldwide believe in sharing gifts on Christmas. Mostly, users prefer to own mobile phones on Christmas either for personal use or for gift. Phone manufacturers usually presents their latest handsets with advanced technology or software programme to attract more the users. The price of Christmas phones are more competent to phones available on normal days.
Anyone can make a profit of increasing importance of mobile phones. Users are highly benefited as they get luxurious phones with reasonable price, free gifts, offers and deal. The relation between user and phone supplier become stronger. Actually, phone manufacturers are also benefited as their sales increase during the time of festival. From Samsung to Nokia, number of brands are there for the people. Nokia 5800, Samsung Tocco Ultra, iPhone 3G S, Sony Ericsson C902 etc., are some latest handsets which are approachable on this Christmas.
Lets come to Motorola. The Motorola Droid is the new handset to hit the market. This phone can be regarded as an iPhone killer. The Android 2.0 operating system is the chief feature of this device. This is a smart successor of Motorola Razr. Another wonderful smartphone, iPhone 3GS is also in the race to attract more users this Christmas. This is actually the hottest device in the world of mobile phones. The third advanced handset is from the home of Blackberry. The Blackberry Bold 9700, will come featured with optical trackpad. This awesome device will run with latest 5.0 operating system. The internal memory capacity is more huge and battery life is more reliable as compared to other handsets.
The Blackberry Bold 9700 is Research In Motion’s latest GSM offering, and will be coming to United States wireless carriers T-Mobile and AT&T. This device serves to replace the original Bold, and features the new optical trackpad. Many Blackberry users are excited about this new phone, as it also showcases a higher resolution, and a major update and improvement to the camera of the original. The device features the latest 5.0 operating system, and a much larger capacity of internal memory than previous models. The reviews have been stellar, and the battery life on the device would make any blackberry addict desperate .
All the above mentioned handsets are multifarious. Several tasks can performed by them from calling to capturing of images, storing of files and Internet accessing. All are blessed with attractive looks, design and advanced features. The price is so reasonable and different free gifting offers, useful deals, discounts etc., come with them. One can take these gadgets anywhere with them as they have perfect dimension and compact size. Numerous comparison websites are there to support phone lovers. One can come to know about the features of favorite handset, deals and offer coming with it. During the time of Christmas, users may feel delighted to see the free gift and free services available with their choice of handset. Just grab the opportunity and become the owner of any of the Christmas mobile phones.